Santiago Leon and Dan Madden preview the 2024 NFL Wildcard Weekend
Contributors
Santiago Leon – @sleon
Ray Sherrod – @ray3473
Browns at Texans
The Houston Texans might have the offensive rookie of the year, defensive rookie of the year and coach of the year after returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
In the wild card round, they host the Cleveland Browns, who might have the best defense in the NFL. The Browns finished the season with a four-game winning streak before resting their starters in the regular season finale. They are making their return to the postseason since 2020.
This season, DeMeco Ryans led the Texans to their first AFC South title behind first-round picks C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr.
Joe Flacco joined the Browns from his couch after the team went through a series of injuries to their quarterbacks. They captured a wild card berth.
In their lone matchup of the regular season, Cleveland beat Houston 36-22 behind a franchise-record 265 receiving yards from Amari Cooper. Stroud was out with a concussion.
Dolphins at Chiefs
Tyreek Hill’s return to Arrowhead Stadium will be a playoff matchup, as his Miami Dolphins (11-6) will face the Kansas City Chiefs (11-6) in the wild card round.
What was once the hottest team in the NFL is stumbling into the playoffs. A few weeks ago, Miami had a chance to get the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye. Instead, the Dolphins lost their last two games, didn’t win the division and will have to likely play on the road for a possible Super Bowl run. Still, the offense remains lethal and could power the team to a victory.
The defending Super Bowl champions are back in the playoffs after an odd season that involved Taylor Swift and several self-inflicted mistakes. Still, Kansas City is one of the most successful playoff teams in recent years, and playing at home, the Chiefs could start the path toward a second-straight title with a win against a team it has already beaten this season.
The Chiefs are favorites to defeat the Dolphins, according to the BetMGM NFL odds.
- Spread: Chiefs (-4.5)
- Moneyline: Chiefs (-225); Dolphins (+185)
- Over/under: 43.5
Steelers at Bills
AFC East meets AFC North as the Buffalo Bills host the Pittsburgh Steelers on 2024 NFL Super Wild Card Weekend on Sunday on CBS and Paramount+. Buffalo enters Sunday’s game as one of the hottest teams in the league, ending the regular season with five straight wins, including victories against the Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys. Pittsburgh earned a playoff berth on the last day of the season, but has also played well, winning the last three games, including the season-finale against the Baltimore Ravens.
For Bills vs. Steelers, the model is projecting that Bills quarterback Josh Allen goes over 223.5 passing yards. The Bills’ starting QB is 3-1 against the Steelers in his career and has averaged 267.8 yards over those four games, including a 424-yard performance when his team last hosted Pittsburgh in 2022.
Allen is coming off a strong regular-season finale, throwing for 359 yards in a 21-14 win against the Miami Dolphins. Buffalo’s pass-heavy offense will go up against a Steelers defense that allowed an average 227.1 yards in the air during the regular season. You may be able to stream the game here.
Packers at Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers have been two of the most successful franchises in the NFL during the Super Bowl era. It comes as no surprise that the two teams have developed a rivalry, with Green Bay leading the all-time series 21-17 and winning playoff matchups over Dallas in 2015 and 2017. Those two teams will battle in the NFL playoff bracket for the ninth time in history on Sunday when the Cowboys host the Packers for a 2024 NFL Super Wild Card Weekend matchup.
Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. ET from AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Dallas is favored by 7.5 points in the latest Cowboys vs. Packers odds via the SportsLine consensus
Rams at Lions
The Detroit Lions’ first home playoff game in three decades features the return of one of the many quarterbacks who failed to lift the franchise to postseason success since it won the NFL title in 1957.
Matthew Stafford, drafted by a Detroit in 2009 coming off the league’s first 0-16 season, is making his return to Ford Field with the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night – three years after asking for a trade that triggered a win-win blockbuster deal.
The Rams acquired Stafford, who led them to Super Bowl title two years ago, in exchange for Jared Goff and first-round picks that helped the Lions draft record-breaking rookie tight end Sam LaPorta, standout rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs and second-year receiver Jameson Williams.
Lions general manager Brad Holmes made the deal in January 2021 with the Rams – the team that employed him for the previous 18 seasons – shortly after he was hired by Detroit. Holmes was tasked with turning around an organization that has been one of the NFL’s worst for generations.
Detroit’s most recent playoff victory was on Jan. 5, 1992, and that was the franchise’s only postseason win in six-plus decades.
The Rams got off a rough start this season, going into their bye with a 3-6 record, before bouncing back to earn a postseason bid for the fifth time in coach Sean McVay’s seven seasons.
When Detroit coach Dan Campbell decided to play his starters last week, hanging onto slim hopes of going from the No. 3 to 2 seed, it looked like Sam LaPorta might have been a casualty.
Eagles at Bucs
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will try to stay hot when they host the slumping Philadelphia Eagles in a Wild Card playoff game on Monday Night Football at Raymond James Stadium. After starting the season 4-7, Tampa Bay (9-8) has won five of its last six games. The Buccaneers, who won the NFC South, are the sixth team in NFL history to make the playoffs after a 4-7 start. Philadelphia (11-6) is going in the opposite direction. After starting the season 10-1, the Eagles have lost five of their last six games. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. ET. Philadelphia is a three-point favorite in the latest Eagles vs. Buccaneers odds via SportsLine consensus while the over/under for total points scored is 43.5.
Santiago Leon is the Founder and CEO of the Sports Cast. He covers NFL, NBA, and world soccer. He’s also founder of sleon productions, which he specializes in technology and serves clients with solutions to make their business grow.
